THEIR PATHOLOGY, DIAGNOSIS, AND TREATMENT. 33 



existing as a disease in itself, and is a sign that should never be over- 

 looked, or its early warning neglected. It is often a symptom of 

 jaundice ; it produces colic ; and there is always a danger of inflammation 

 of the bowels following when it is not early attended to. Some horses are 

 naturally of a costive habit, and require to be dieted with additional 

 care in consequence, as whenever confined to heating and stimulating 

 food, such as corn and beans, constipation take3 place, but with all such 

 horses the evil is easily prevented and the tendency corrected by an 

 occasional mash in lieu of corn, a daily allowance of green food in the 

 season, and at other times a portion of carrots or other roots chopped 

 up carefully, and mixed with the chaff and corn. When the costiveness 

 does not at once yield to the dieting alone, no time should be lost in 

 resorting to additional means to procure the desired result, most impor. 

 tant of which will be backraking, and the injection of clysters of 

 Warm gruel with castor oil, or a solution of aloes may be added, or about 

 |lb. of Epsom salts dissolved in every gallon, or soap and water luke- 

 warm may be used with loz. of spirit of turpentine to each quart and 

 thoroughly mixed by agitation before being injected, or a solution of 

 common salt may be tried instead of either of the above ; the backraking, 

 however, must precede the use of the clysters, as otherwise the hardened 

 feces would effectually prevent the admission of the liquid. In back- 

 raking, the hand, by placing the thumb and fingers close together 

 lengthwise, will be cone shaped, and, after dipping in olive oil or other- 

 wise well greasing it, it is introduced into the rectum, and all the 

 hardened faeces removed. This must be done more than once before 

 the enemas are used, and it should bo undertaken by a person with a 

 small hand ; this is a very needful operation which any groom may 

 do with care, and it should always be resorted to in cases where it is 

 found necessary to give a horse physic without having been previously 

 prepared with mashes, &c. I may here observe that it is a dangerous 

 practice to give purgatives in case of costiveness before back-raking and 

 enemas have been used, and that in using the latter a small quantity 

 is likely to have no effect, and that from one to two gallons at least should 

 be thrown up. If during the existence of costiveness the pulse is found 

 to quicken much, and the belly become tender to the touch, the horse may 

 be bled. Prevention of costiveness and its results will be achieved by 

 correct dieting and watchfulness over the horse's general health. 



Cough.— We are all too familiar with coughs, both in ourselves and 

 our domestic animals, all of which, in common with us, are subject to 

 it. Cough is an effort of the lungs to get rid of extraneous and 

 irritating matter. The muscles of the respiratory organs are set in 

 motion, and by a sudden spasmodic action the air from the lungs and 

 passages leading to them is violently expelled, carrying with it phlegm 

 and other matter that may have collected, and that interferes with the 

 free passage of the air. Cough is symptomatic of disease, not a disease 

 in itself ; and of the many varieties of cough which we recognise, each 



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